My ladder trick backfired spectacularly on Saturday

I was trying to hang gutters by myself and thought I could save time by balancing the ladder on a stack of pavers. Two hours and a cracked downspout later, I realized paying my neighbor $20 to hold the ladder would have been cheaper. Anyone else try a shortcut that just made things worse?

2 comments

2 Comments

elizabeth4381mo ago

Wait, are you saying you actually balanced a ladder on loose pavers? Honestly I used to think stuff like that was just common sense until I tried to hang a heavy mirror solo last year. I propped my ladder against a wet wall and it slid out from under me, cracked the plaster and bent the ladder. Ngl, that day made me real careful about safety. Tbh, your shortcut sounds like something I would have done five years ago before I learned the hard way. Now I just bite the bullet and get help or rent proper gear.

blair_allen1mo ago

Ever thought about just how many of our so-called time-savers end up costing us twice the time and money? Your wet wall story reminds me that the shortcuts we take usually just create a longer, more painful path to the same result.